Nuova Shenron
Nuova Shenron (四星龍, Sì Xīng Lóng, literally Four-Star Dragon) is one of the seven Shadow Dragons, and the fifth to be fought by Son Goku and Pan. Nuova is the dragon of the Four-Star Dragon Ball | | | | | | | | | | | | |} | and represents the element of fire. He also states that he was born from King Piccolo wishing for the restoration of his youth during the events of the original Dragon Ball series. His name is likely a play on the English word "Nova". Plot Overview He first encounters Goku and Pan when they wandered into his domain – a city which he had reduced to a desert wasteland – and attempted to strike them down whilst encased in an orb of flame. After introducing himself as ‘the invincible four-star dragon’, Pan proceeded to inform him of the demise of four of the other dragons (something which seemingly surprised Nuova) and attempted to fight Nuova herself. However, he easily dodged her attack and knocked her out with a sound blow to the head. Goku demanded Nuova release the unconscious Pan and, to the Saiyan's surprise, Nuova did just that and quietly set Pan out of harm’s way. The two then squared off in a proper confrontation and Nuova swiftly overpowered Goku with his sheer speed and the ability to increase his body temperature to the equivalent of the sun. Goku is then forced to go on the defensive as Nuova relentlessly pursues him all across the city. Goku can only use ki attacks without burning himself, but finds himself too hungry to shoot any. After nearly meeting his end from Nuova's lethal Nova Death Ray technique, Goku decides to amp up the stakes and transforms straight to his Super Saiyan 4 form. Nuova responds in kind and transforms by shedding his outer shell, becoming much faster. While this allows Goku to even the odds somewhat, Nuova still holds a firm advantage thanks to his speed; Goku is only able to outmaneuver Nuova by leading him underground and using deception, allowing him to catch Nuova off-guard. However, Goku doesn’t finish off Nuova. When the shadow dragon demands to know why, Goku explains that it is his way of thanking him for not harming his grand-daughter when he had the chance. Nuova simply replies that he wishes for a fair fight, a policy of which Goku approves. The two then return to the surface to commence their match anew. The two are the interrupted by the arrival of Nuova’s twin brother, Eis Shenron. Eis ridicules and pummels Nuova – who does not retaliate due to Eis being his brother – for his apparent weakness and takes on Goku himself. Nuova sits on the sidelines, refusing to gang up on an opponent. Goku mostly beats Eis, who resorts to freezing the Saiyan in place in order to win and instructs Nuova to incinerate him. Instead Nuova uses the heat of his attack to melt the ice surrounding Goku, allowing him to take on Eis a second time. Nuova later states how disgusted he is at Eis' tactics, but still does not strike him. When Goku successfully has Eis at pointblank range, Nuova is the one who requests Goku release him if he gives him the Dragon ball (despite stating that Eis "brought this on himself"). After Eis' demise, Nuova thanks Goku for a good fight and gives him some sort of medicine for the blindness caused by Eis' final attack. He then states that he will fight Goku again once the Saiyan recovers. Unfortunately, Nuova is killed on the spot by Syn Shenron, who is disgusted by Nuova showing mercy to the wounded Saiyan. As he dies Nuova apologizes to Goku, saying he wanted to settle their fight fairly. Nuova returns once more before the conclusion of the saga, this time to help Goku and Vegeta in defeating the seemingly unstoppable Omega Shenron. After almost defeating Omega once during the fight, Goku managed to intercept (and swallow) the Four-Star Dragon ball. This allowed Nuova to be reborn and empowered with Goku’s positive energy and he emerged from Goku's body seemingly loyal to Omega once again. Nuova requests that he face the two Saiyans alone and Omega agrees. Nuova then proceeds to outmatch Vegeta with little effort before blasting him out of the way. After a brief scuffle with Goku, the pair then hit Omega with a surprise attack, allowing Nuova to initiate the next part of the plan to destroy Omega. Surrounding them both in a Nova Sphere, Nuova restrains Omega Shenron and states his contempt for him; he then attempts to incinerate Omega once and for all. Nuova even mocks Omega for the way he attacks his opponents by turning his back against him, remembering that he had shot him in the back when he first appeared. Unfortunately, Nuova’s taunts of him being immune to the heat of his own attack gives Omega the idea to forcefully possess Nuova via Naturon Shenron's ability to possess bodies (when he absorbed the six other Dragon Balls, he took their powers along with them). Despite his best efforts Nuova’s body is used as a shell for Omega, allowing him to survive the blast. After the attack dissipates Omega bursts out of Nuova’s body and re-absorbs his Dragon ball. Anti-hero? Nuova Shenron's innate nobility and morals, unique among the seven Shadow Dragons, could stem from a number of places. The most obvious is that he is the dragon of the Four-Star ball, a Dragon ball which has always been associated with Goku and his adoptive grandfather, Grandpa Gohan. Another is that the wish made by King Piccolo – unlike all the other wishes that spawned the Shadow Dragons – was a selfish one, and as such would produce less negative energy after being granted. Nuova Shenron also has the distinction of being the last character Goku is able to win over to his side. Another example of Nuova being a good Shadow Dragon is the element that he wields: fire, which is viewed as an element of nobility used by some some protagonists in certain media. Abilities *'Sun Gun Attack': Nuova Shenron hides in a fireball and shoots ki blasts from within it. *'Nova Death Ray': A superheated beam shot through a purple lens barrier. *'Nova Star': A huge ball of fire shot at the opponent. This move is used on Goku to melt the ice from Eis Shenron's ice ray. (Dubbed "Burst Attack" in Tenkaichi 3) *'Nova Sphere': Nuova Shenron's ultimate attack. He grabs his opponent, then encases both himself and the opponent in a fireball. The fireball will explode if any volatile attacks are made, with a powerful explosion that can even kill Omega Shenron. Nuova Shenron himself will not be harmed by the explosion. *'[http://dragonball.wikia.com/wiki/Ki_Blast ''Ki Blast]: The most basic form of energy wave. *'''Flight: Concentrating energy (ki) to fly. Video game appearances Nuova Shenron made his debut video game appearance in Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3. He is playable in his second form as well as his alternate outfit being similar to his brother Eis Shenron and has the Nova Star as his final attack. Although Nuova is a good guy in GT, he is listed as a bad guy in BT3. However, this is because he started out bad; 18, 16, and Fat Majin Buu are also listed as villains. The mistake doesn't carry over to Yamcha, Tien, Vegeta, or Piccolo, with the exceptions of Vegeta (Scouter) and Majin Vegeta who actually was evil at one point. Voice actors *Japanese dub: Ken Yamaguchi *FUNimation Dub: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Burgmeier John Burgmeier]